It was a rough weekend involving nerves, high winds, and tough competition for the No. 38 Penn State's women golf team.

The Nittany Lions placed 11th out of 13 teams, while the University of Tennessee came away with the victory. Penn State shot a 950, 46 shots more than Tennessee's 904. The host school, Purdue University, came in second, losing out to the Volunteers by a single shot. The University of Illinois and Kent State tied for third with 921.

The Lions started the tournament by shooting 317 and 321 in the second round. They finished out the tournament with a 312 in the third.

Penn State coach Denise St. Pierre said she doesn't think the team played horribly, just mediocre, but that sometimes mediocre isn't good enough.

"We have to bring our A-game, not our B-game," St. Pierre said. "[This tournament] was too competitive to play mediocre."

She said that the golfers felt they had something to prove with this being the last tournament before the Big Ten Championship, and the pressure grew greater with so many other Big Ten teams competing, such as Michigan State, Michigan, Northwestern, and Iowa.

"They put a little extra pressure on themselves," St. Pierre said. "We got a little nervous."

Individually, senior Katie Futcher finished tied for 11th and led the Lions with 228 by shooting a 76 in all three rounds. Despite her very consistent play, Futcher wasn't happy with her performance.

"I don't think I played very well," Futcher said. "What got me in trouble were my poor drives."

Freshman Amber Weinerth came in second on the team and tied for 44th overall by shooting a 77-78-86 for a 241.

St. Pierre said that Weinerth handled the tough conditions very well.

"She hung in there, and really gave her all," St. Pierre said.

Weinerth said that she just didn't feel comfortable in the last round, and that cost her.

"I felt very uncomfortable with my shots," Weinerth said. "I didn't put myself in good position."

Fellow freshman Katrin Wolfe rounded out the top three Lion performers. She shot an 81-86-76 for a 243. She tied for 50th overall. Wolfe described her performance as two separate golfers -- one who shot the first two rounds, and the other who came out and shot a better third round.

"I played like myself [in the third round]," Wolfe said. "It was me on the course."

Seniors Meghan Mull, Cindy Skilton and Keri Dugan also competed in the tournament. Mull and Skilton both placed 61st by shooting 250. Dugan place 65th, two strokes behind at a 252.

The team said it hopes to perform better when it encounters its fellow Big Ten teams again later this month at the Big Ten Championship being held in Iowa.

Without making excuses, St. Pierre said the team will have to refocus and get set for the next tournament.

"We've very disappointed," St. Pierre said. "[But] we can't hang our heads. The key is going to be to get busy to get better."